Pennsylvania county commissioners and first responders discuss raising 911 surcharge
Natalie Kim is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University who has spent the last 3 years reporting on local government issues. Before joining Pittsburgh Current, she wrote for the Carnegie Mellon student newspaper, where she covered campus politics and community relations.
More from Natalie →
On Friday morning, county commissioners met with first responders from across Pennsylvania to learn more about the challenges 911 dispatchers are facing as they look to push lawmakers to raise funding.For nearly two hours, the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania's Emergency Management and Veterans Affairs Committee heard from three panels.Westmoreland County Deputy Director of Public Safety Eugene Good was on one of them, talking about the need for sustainable funding to keep the system running across the state."If we expect our PSAPs to meet the demands of today and prepare for the challenges of tomorrow, we must fund them accordingly," Good said."They calm the people down before we get there," said Joe Brown, the president of Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 71, Berks County. "They get us the vital information, and then they're dealing with whatever happens out at the scene to get the help that's needed." Specifically, they discussed the legislative priority for CCAP to g